


Casino AU

by shinesurge



Series: Casino AU [1]
Category: Kidd Commander (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Casino AU, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Non-Graphic Violence, STILL HOLLERIN ABOUT THIS, fic by other people
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-15
Updated: 2018-08-15
Packaged: 2019-06-27 23:24:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,603
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15695493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shinesurge/pseuds/shinesurge
Summary: Ulrich is a businessman at his wit's end, but at least Ellie is around to scrape him off the floor when his mistakes catch up with him. Written by Amaaré!





	Casino AU

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written by Amaaré, a scholar and a gentleman and possibly an immortal who can't be bothered to make an AO3 account. But the people must know about Seedy Businessman Ulrich, so here it is just for u.

**Casino AU**

The ancient, eternally unreliable clock on the stained wall clonked it’s way past an approximation of 7am. Ulrich’s arm slipped off the side of his battered desk and his head hit the ledger he’d been staring at for the last 2 hours, the near-empty worn out ballpoint jabbing him in the cheek and bringing him rudely back to his senses.

He swore absently and rubbed his face, yawning as he did so before pushing his chair back and heading around the counter to make yet another cup of coffee. How many did this make now? 11? 12? He couldn’t remember, but he knew it must have been at least 48 hours since he last slept for more than 20 minutes at a time.

As the 20 year old machine hissed and spluttered thick black coffee like steaming hot sweet honey from hell into his favourite mug he began going through his usual routine of checking the contents of his pockets. First the trousers, front and back, then the jacket, inside and out, then the pockets that he’d sewn in himself for the bits and pieces he didn’t want anyone else to know were there. Satisfied, though the contents had no possible reason to have changed, he picked up his coffee, opened the fridge, added enough cream to take away the bitterness he’d never really learned to enjoy, despite what he pretended, and took the steaming mug back to the desk.

It was only when he had taken a swallow and refocused on the book that he remembered that he’d already redone these calculations a dozen times and they hadn’t got any better. He groaned like a wounded animal and started rubbing the palm of his right hand against the corner of the table where the callus still showed. He tried not to carry his guns these days, at least not openly, but old habits never really died and The Last Word had left it’s mark indelibly on him over the years. It was no good, he knew, he was going to have to call “him” again.

Reaching across the desk for the cracked plastic of the phone that sat there, his hand stopped just short of the handset. Ellie mocked him for his never-ending refusal to carry a mobile, but he hated the idea of something that could track him that easily, despite it hardly being a concern these days.

Thinking of her made up his mind, he had to keep the place running, it might not have been the dream he’d dreamed when he was a kid, entranced by the dance of the cards, the click of the wheel, the clatter of chips, but he knew she loved the place, maybe much more than he did.

He made the call.

“Uhuh.”

“Yeah it’s…”

“Of course.”

“The usual place, right.”

It was still disconcerting how the bastard always knew. In his sensible, human brain he knew he probably used caller ID and it wasn’t as if he ever called about anything else, but something much older, back there at the base of his skull still whispered that it wasn’t that at all. Tomorrow night, no… he glanced up at the clock as it clunked and clonked it’s unsteady way onwards, tonight, midnight of course, why did it always have to be midnight? He grumbled to himself about theatrics as his eyelids drooped and trailed off as his head slid from his open palm and landed in the soft embrace of the ledger’s open pages.

When he woke, he had the usual brief moment of panic, his hand jumping to the holster that wasn’t there before his brain caught up and assessed his surroundings. The ledger had been moved aside and closed, replaced with a pillow without even waking him. The coffee cup was gone and there was a blanket draped over him. He got up, opened the door behind the counter and threw the pillow back onto his unmade bed. He was just about to screw the blanket up to do the same when he caught a whiff of her scent on it and, glancing around as if there might be anyone there, inhaled deeply, losing himself for just a moment in a reverie of soft thoughts before folding the blanket neatly and putting it on the bed.

Reassured that no-one else was around, he went to the bathroom and made an effort to tidy himself up, regarding the remains of last night in the cracked mirror for a moment before looking away from his own gaze. A wash, a new shirt and a half hearted shave later, he stepped out onto the casino floor, momentarily distracted, and failed to notice that the place was busy! Thankfully, his double take went unnoticed, as everyone was far too occupied in their activities to even see him emerge. He glanced up at the much more expensive yet discreet clock above the main bar (didn’t want customers getting distracted by little things like the time, there were plenty of better distractions) and realised that it was already almost 10pm. How long must he have been asleep for? He swore again, but internally this time, his face now set to Professional, ready to greet and make friendly agreement with whoever passed.

Sidling over to the bar, his face cracked into a genuine smile as he saw Ellie already on duty and marshalling the other waitresses and bar staff, managing orders and money transfers and generally keeping the place ticking over happily in his unconscious absence. 

After a few moments standing there she glanced over and flashed him a smile of her own before moving off again to deal with something else. Ulrich leaned heavily on the bar, not trusting his legs to support him for a few moments.

Once he had recovered, he began to circulate the floor, laughing here, taking drinks off a tray and handing them round there, generally being the smiling face of the establishment that could definitely make YOU rich, if you just played the game well enough. Inside he hated these parts, when the place was full of customers and noise. A part of him played up to it, taking pleasure in fooling people, seeing their plays that they thought were so subtle, running the show, but mostly he regretted missing the start of the day, or the end, when the floor was almost empty, most of the staff had gone home and he could feel the atmosphere of the casino without all the people. And when She might have a chance to talk.

After finishing his rounds, he made his way back to the bar and waited for a clear moment to beckon Ellie over.

“Hey uhhh, I have to go out for a bit, a little business to take care of, you know.” 

“Look after the place, ok?” he added, knowing she would have done it anyway.

Ellie regarded her boss critically. Though really, since she’d dropped her mother’s inheritance into the place to keep it running, the term “partner” would have been more appropriate, but neither of them had ever been comfortable using the term. 

“What are you up to? It better not be anything under the table again.” she said, just loud enough for him to hear.

Ulrich spread his arms wide in a gesture of openness, “Just a meeting with the bank, don’t you trust me?” The soft sound of his voice caressed her ears and made her brain tingle, but another critical look made him fidget and the start of a blush form on his cheeks.

“Alright, but be back for close this time ok? The staff need to see you around more.”

“I will, I promise.” 

He was giving her a confident smile, but she’d seen that look a hundred times before.

“Go on then, get out of here.”

“And maybe tonight you’ll sleep in your bed and not at your desk!” she added to his retreating back.

Ulrich reached the back door in double time and closed it behind him, the cool night air calming him down. The fact that she always seemed to see right through him made him uncomfortable in a way he’d never been able to tell was good or bad, but was damn sure he wasn’t going to disappoint. 

Checking his pockets one more time, he set off down the street, his hand resting gently inside his left trouser pocket, where only the most well trained and sensitive eye would have seen a slightly suspicious shape extending rather past where a pocket would normally end. 

Checking his watch, he realised he had left earlier than he thought and he decided to take a longer route, it had been too long since he walked the back streets near his establishment and home. 

Avoiding the main thoroughfares, he took a winding, circuitous path through back streets and alleyways that were mostly deserted, more comfortable without the drunken crowds that still filled the middle of town at this hour.

After half an hour of satisfying himself that he still knew every inch of his surroundings, he began to head for the usual meeting place. It was only when he started following a more purposeful path that the little tingle on the back of his neck that told him someone was following became clearer. Without giving any sign that he’d noticed, he turned a corner and vanished into the shadows of a deep doorway, his hand back in his pocket, body tensed. 

He stood there for what felt like a long time, waiting for his pursuer to turn the corner…

Nothing.

Ulrich took a deep breath through his nose and exhaled.

He was getting rusty, imagining things, it was probably just nerves knowing where he was going, these meetings always put him on edge.

Settling his clothes and smoothing out the creases from where he’d been standing, he set off again at a brisk pace and within 2 minutes he reached the usual spot.

This was part of what he hated, the place where they had to meet was clearly chosen, if not actively designed to put him in a weak spot. A well between the backs of 3 buildings, with 3 alleyways leading in, the one by which he entered and 2 more at 120 degree angles that were all filled with impenetrable darkness from where he stood. 

Checking his watch again to be sure he was on-time, he affected an air of nonchalance and leaned against the wall. He didn’t have to wait long before he heard the tell-tale swish of a silk suit and a figure detached itself from the darkness of another alley, appearing for a moment as a darker shadow before a flash of white hair and bright teeth and eyes burst out of the shadow, that awful smile greeting him as if they were friends.

“Weiss! I’m delighted you finally came to see me.”

Ulrich grunted non-comitally.

“Oh don’t be like that, we’ve always got on so well.”. The smile widened further, the tips of his teeth starting to show.

Ulrich decided to cut this bit short “You know why I’m here, things haven’t gone as well as I hoped and-” The man waved a hand dismissively, cutting him off.

“The same reason as always, of course, of course. Unfortunately, you have borrowed rather a lot from me this last year.”

Ulrich shrugged, trying to maintain his confident demeanor, curse his damn unreadable smiling face. 

“The casino business has it’s ups and downs, I assure you I’ll be able to make payment soon.” He gave it an extra push, making himself seem reasonable and personable, a friend, someone to be trusted, but it was like pushing against a brick wall.

“I’m so sorry Mr Weiss, but I think you need to learn a more direct lesson.” Ulrich picked up on the tone and leaped back, the metal fist from the other alley smacking into his shoulder instead of his chest, spinning him, but leaving him standing. 

He jumped again, one hand swiping across his face and the other whipping something from a pocket. The shadows vanished as the well was suddenly filled with blindingly bright light. He quickly followed up with another pocket and the place was filled with smoke. 

He darted for the alley he’d come in by as fast as he could, but a pair of bright blue lights was waiting for him, and the punch that followed lifted him from his feet and deposited him in the dirt. 

What followed blurred into a maze of pain as the blows landed on him, each one hitting with mechanical precision. He lost all track of how long it went on before he finally passed out.

Ulrich ran through darkness, bursting through walls of pain and barriers of hurtful purple light, his eyes were closed but they were still assaulted by the pulsing light of his own brain. Then suddenly, a soft sensation of feathers and the pain fell away, letting him finally drift off into the embrace of sleep.

When at last he slid back into consciousness, he tried to open his eyes and couldn’t. As his senses started coming back he could feel fingers on his eyelids and a warm cloth wiping his face. He reached up to pull the hand away, but his arm was gently but firmly pushed back. He assessed the rest of the sensations available, what felt like his own chair underneath him, the soft sound of breathing, interspersed with something else.

After a few moments, the fingers withdrew and he opened his eyes. He was indeed back in his own chair, though it had been pulled away into the middle of the floor, a bowl of water and some blood stained cloths were sitting on the side of the desk, the clock on the wall clanked and clonked in it’s usual fashion. Eventually his eyes managed to focus where they’d been avoiding looking.

Ellie was standing with her back to him, her ears were drooping forward in that way that he always found so irresistibly sweet when she was down, and her shoulders were moving oddly.

“...” he tried to speak, but his throat felt like it was broken.

“You fucking idiot.”

He blinked in shock. 

“Wh…”

She spun around to face him, her face was angry but her eyes were red and he could still see the streaks of tears down her face where she’d tried to rub them away.

“What did you think you were doing?” He blinked some more and tried to make it clear he couldn’t respond.

She stared at him for a few long moments before her expression softened and she reached out and held him by the cheeks.

“You’re such an idiot, you know that.” she said again, but this time with no malice behind it. 

He tried to force his face into a grin and ended up wincing from the pain of movement instead. He could feel the softness of her hands and smell her scent, then it struck him that this was physically the closest they had ever been. He shivered and his breath left him in a small sigh.

“Such an idiot.” she said again, almost whispering now, her face getting closer and closer to his. 

As their lips touched he nearly died of shock, neither able to pull away or to take any control of the situation, he was forced to accept it.

He shivered as her fingers stroked across his bruised and battered face and neck, finally managing to force out two words from his cracked lips.

“I’m sorry.”


End file.
